Barney Reiffen

Barney Reiffen of Lexington, on Sunday, March 11, 2012. For 6l years, he was the devoted husband of Constance (Kaplan). Beloved father of Jayn & Jim Foley of FL and Robert & Cindy Reiffen of NH. Loving grandfather of eight and great grandfather of four. Dear brother of Rita Friedman. Services at Temple Isaiah, 55 Lincoln Street, Lexington on Tuesday, March 13 at 11:00am. Memorial observance at his late residence Thursday from 2-4pm & 7-9pm and Saturday 7-9pm. Please omit flowers. Remembrances would be appreciated to Temple Isaiah, Lexington, MA 0242l.

Former longtime associate of Lincoln Labs.Barney Reiffen received a Bachelor's degree from Cooper Union (1949), a

Master's degree from Brooklyn Polytechnic (1953), and a PhD from MIT (1960), all in Electrical Engineering. His PhD study was about how to insure that data could be transmitted error-free over a communications system that might otherwise distort the signal or lose it in background static. That work was published in 1960 by the MIT Press in the book "Sequential Decoding." He continued working on reliable communications at MIT Lincoln Laboratory until his retirement in 1988, both as an individual contributor and, most importantly, as a team leader. The 1960s and 1970s were exciting times, because (finely!) available technology was catching up with what mathematical theory said should be possible. Lincoln Laboratory applied this new technology to communications satellites that relayed signals between widely-spaced ground stations or aircraft. Under Barney Reiffen's leadership, a number of experimental satellite payloads were built, launched, and tested with corresponding ground stations. This proof of principal then allowed the US Air Force to contract with industry to supply this capability on a continuing basis. Arrangements by the Levine Chapels, Brookline, MA